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Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Alpha Natural Resources (NYSE: ANR) closed down more than 17% after adjusted earnings came in well short of estimates.

So what: Alpha, now the world's third-largest coal miner, booked $0.96 a share in second-quarter earnings after excluding costs related to its acquisition of Massey Energy and other special items. Revenue rose 59.3% to $1.59 billion. Analysts were looking for $1.12 a share on $1.47 billion in revenue, according to data compiled by Yahoo! Finance.

Now what: The selloff may be overdone. Only one month's worth of Massey's performance was included with the results, and pricing was already trending higher. In short: Earnings miss notwithstanding, all the reasons my Foolish colleague Christopher Barker liked Alpha in January appear to still be valid. Do you agree? Disagree? Weigh in using the comments box below.

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I agree it is worth holding. The liability from the purchase of Massey will just be blip, but not a great concern. The use of coal is rising around the world as can be seen in reports, but more telling is the size of the coal piles in Norfolk, VA ready to ship.

Sending report...

Tim Beyers first began writing for the Fool in 2003. Today, he's an analyst for Motley Fool Rule Breakers and Motley Fool Supernova. At Fool.com, he covers disruptive ideas in technology and entertainment, though you'll most often find him writing and talking about the business of comics. Find him online at timbeyers.me or send email to tbeyers@fool.com. For more insights, follow Tim on Google+ and Twitter.